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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשישי, 27 נובמבר 2020 11:09
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Why are there So Many Russian Millionaires in Israel? - This Shabbat Passover Thought of Torah
By now everyone probably knows the joke about how is there an only "One Page Idiot's Guide to Jewish Holidays in a Nutshell"
One page?
They tried to Destroy us.
G-d saved us.
Let's Eat.
Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach would say :
Most people have been to seders' where uncle X tells bad jokes, and useless (to say the least ) stories - and you have to smile.
OK - SOMETIMES we're also a little Uncle X.
But tonight we can ALL BE MOSES!
(And focused like the Russian Immigrants who came to Israel 25-35 years ago -
to MAKE IT like the American Jews of the last century! BUT be FOCUSED ON OUR MISSION.
Dress up like Moses with a kittle - or at least a whilte shirt - and be PROUD to be JEWS
Proud NOT to be taken down by the Pharoahs of the world - who view everything in terms of dollars.
and Let's get up before Kiddush - AND get OUT of Egypt! Pray for eah other, and for SPIRITUALITY.
Forget the One Page Idiot's Guide - because WE HAVE A MISSION in this world full of Pharoahs-
and full of falsehoods.
Start by saying "Thank You" to G-d for protecting us from the Egyptians - and the forces of evil.
Say thank you for the miracle of crossing the Red Sea -
for every day of health - and every loved one-
Thank G-d for the Jews getting out of Russia – and Ethiopia –
And recently - more Jews got out of the Uktraine than we thought SURVIVED 60 years ago!
Make this the deepest Passover ever - each and every one at the seder should:
say what they would have been doing if they were THERE in EGYPT seder night,
a nd each person around the table can
ask 4 questions about the dash to the desert - getting away from the Egyptian culture -
as opposed to our Torah and Traditions which started our long journey home via that desert!
Have a great seder and Shabbos and Passover
Love from Israel
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשישי, 27 נובמבר 2020 11:08
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two Questions on :Portion Tzav – Shabat Hagadol (called) the "Great Shabbat" (before Passover) – Is it Really
Two ideas stick out when thinking about this Tzav portion (it talks mostly of sacrifices of repentance and – at the end – Moses told to bring the people close to the new Tabernacle):
What's so great about this Shabbat? Just because it's a custom to read (much of) the Hagadah the week BEFORE Passover? Doesn' that get BORING?
(and MAY YOUR SEDERS NEVER be BORING!)
Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach used to say "let this be the greatest Shabbat you ever had!"
How could he say it every week ? Well, just because that's the way it SHOULD BE! And CAN be with just a little effort – and our CUSTOMS show us the way!
From Rabbi Sholom Brodt's weekly Torah Message: (I paraphrase here) the Piascetzner Rebbe from Warsaw wrote that "when you accept G-d – you are making G-d GREAT in the world."
When you read the Hagaddah the week BEFORE Passover – and think up questions and answers for talking at the table - you should be doing it to help REALIZE how GREAT the Almighty is – taking us out of Egypt (and pulling us out of every calamity to this day) – and you are then READY to fix the world by vocalizing this greatness.
And: From talking with my professor friend who got married this morning (Mazal Tov – a very wonderful wedding you shared with us) who said this morning "why does the world make up all those lies about Israel and blame Jewish "settlements" for all the woes of the Middle East – like the new war in Yemen the old war in Iraq, and the Syrian murders of 200,000 civilians and the Iran race to atomic weaponry? Isn't it CRAZY? So he said:
Our politicians - just don't say "G-d gave us the land 3000 years ago!" "The World" could never have an answer to that one !"
The "world" can't answer an historical fact – they can lie (as they do with callousness like in World War Two) – but then it's clearly a lie and we needn't give it a thought. They're liars.
So when we realize that and get ready for Passover and remember all the "sin offerings" in the Temple were to START THINGS OVER,
And that the Tabernacle - Temple was dedicated just before Passover – we have PERSPECTIVE on this week's portion and how we make it
"The Great Great Greatest Shabbat"!
Love and Shabbos - Shabbat Shalom
, Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשישי, 27 נובמבר 2020 11:08
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Portion of Vayakhel Pekuday Parah - Celebrate in Shul that We are ALL ONE!
(Torah thought the week before Israel Elections and for Shabbat Across America-
despite all the accusations directed from one political party to another!)
Why am I giving Kiddush in the Breslov Shul - Elad tomorrow?
The end of the Second Book of the Five Books of Moses depicts a "celebration" -
one by the Almighty - but seeingly NOT one by Am Yisroel - the People of Israel!
Moshe our Teacher finally puts up the Tabernacle in the Desert - but while
it does describe the Almighty showing us Divine Presence in the new Tabernacle -
the pillar of fire at night and the pillar of smoke in daylight -
it does NOT describe a celebration by the People of Israel!
But how could they not Celebrate?
For an answer think the WAY the Torah teaches us to THINK and APPRECIATE-
the Rules of the Almighty - think in terms of the WHOLE TORAH!
Starting with Book Number One!
Would the Almighty visit Abraham if his tent were not open to all?
Would G-d save Isaac if his tent, even in the midst of the Phillistines, was not holy ?
Would the L-rd warn Laban against attacking Jacob if Jacob's camp - the Israel family-
was not doing the will of the Almighty?
Of course not!
SO HERE IS THE TENT OF THE SPIRIT OF G-D and ISRAEL-
it MUST be full of JOY and Holiness!
So THINK like the TORAH - the page number is not important-
and the WHOLE THIRD BOOK (we start to read NEXT week) is the connection between the second and the fourth!
See ALL the 5 books as One - and the PURPOSE of the Almighty-
see the 12 tribes as One - with a message for the world-
see Israel and the Torah and the Almighty as ONE -
a Force to bring Holiness into Reality!
So from THIS portion we go to the Fourth Book - Portion of Naso
which describes the days of "setting up the Tabernacle"- Actuallythere WAS a party –
12 days the Presidents of the Tribes brought offerings to the Tabernacle –
including "Zivchay Shelamim" – a type of sacrifices that were to be eaten!
So it seems there WAS a great party for all the Israelites – a 12 day celebration
(and then preparation for (Passover!) holiday)!
G-d celebrates BECAUSE we celebraete faithfully -
(and in Breslav Elad tomorrow I celebrate the Bar Mitzva Portion
of both my brother and my son - may they live long and healthy and add to our JOY!)
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשישי, 27 נובמבר 2020 11:08
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Portion of Vayakhel Pekuday Parah - Celebrate in Shul that We are ALL ONE!
(Torah thought the week before Israel Elections and for Shabbat Across America-
despite all the accusations directed from one political party to another!)
Why am I giving Kiddush in the Breslov Shul - Elad tomorrow?
The end of the Second Book of the Five Books of Moses depicts a "celebration" -
one by the Almighty - but seeingly NOT one by Am Yisroel - the People of Israel!
Moshe our Teacher finally puts up the Tabernacle in the Desert - but while
it does describe the Almighty showing us Divine Presence in the new Tabernacle -
the pillar of fire at night and the pillar of smoke in daylight -
it does NOT describe a celebration by the People of Israel!
But how could they not Celebrate?
For an answer think the WAY the Torah teaches us to THINK and APPRECIATE-
the Rules of the Almighty - think in terms of the WHOLE TORAH!
Starting with Book Number One!
Would the Almighty visit Abraham if his tent were not open to all?
Would G-d save Isaac if his tent, even in the midst of the Phillistines, was not holy ?
Would the L-rd warn Laban against attacking Jacob if Jacob's camp - the Israel family-
was not doing the will of the Almighty?
Of course not!
SO HERE IS THE TENT OF THE SPIRIT OF G-D and ISRAEL-
it MUST be full of JOY and Holiness!
So THINK like the TORAH - the page number is not important-
and the WHOLE THIRD BOOK (we start to read NEXT week) is the connection between the second and the fourth!
See ALL the 5 books as One - and the PURPOSE of the Almighty-
see the 12 tribes as One - with a message for the world-
see Israel and the Torah and the Almighty as ONE -
a Force to bring Holiness into Reality!
So from THIS portion we go to the Fourth Book - Portion of Naso
which describes the days of "setting up the Tabernacle"- Actuallythere WAS a party –
12 days the Presidents of the Tribes brought offerings to the Tabernacle –
including "Zivchay Shelamim" – a type of sacrifices that were to be eaten!
So it seems there WAS a great party for all the Israelites – a 12 day celebration
(and then preparation for (Passover!) holiday)!
G-d celebrates BECAUSE we celebraete faithfully -
(and in Breslav Elad tomorrow I celebrate the Bar Mitzva Portion
of both my brother and my son - may they live long and healthy and add to our JOY!)
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשישי, 27 נובמבר 2020 11:07
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Tetzaveh - Make Special Priestly Garments - and on Purim - wear a Mask
Based on a talk by Rabbi Carlebach (with my interpretation)
Amalek and Haman try to bring us down by saying :
Sure you LOOK like you're doing something good,
but on the INSIDE you don't mean it!
This week's portion commands Moses and Aron to have special garments made for the Priests to wear in the Temple
Their MAIN job was to BLESS the people of Israel -
something that MUST come from the heart.
The garments are to PROTECT us from the OUTSIDE
so that INSIDE the heart would overflow with Blessings.
How did the blessings flow from the priests - and from ALL of us?
How do you wipe out EVIL like Haman's evil?
When your heart Overflows with Blessings.
But if the EVIL AMALEK and HAMAN come to you and say on Purim
"you can't destroy the Evil in the World because Inside you really doesn't WANT to!"
Evil throws DOUBTS at us
and at our resolve to do GOOD and to BLESS each other.
On Purim you LEARN to tell "old man evil" that:
"Look at me? See the Mask?
See my Jewish Uniform?
It's not just "little old ME" but
IT's REALLY the GOOD That's INSIDE ME
that wants to wipe out Evil -
and that's the TRUTH that can't be denied!"
We ALL want evil to be destroyed -
so have NO SELF DOUBTS that we EACH are a PART of wiping out the Evil in the world.
Gutt Shabbos
Gutt Purim
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשישי, 27 נובמבר 2020 11:04
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Trumah and Adar and Purim - and who are we really
The Torah is about Abraham's journey and his childrens' - all the way down to US.
The 2nd thru the 5th Books of the 5 Books of Moses are about Moses' journey - and about US.
On the surface we read this week's Portion and it is about Building a Temple on the shifting sands of the Sinai desert-
BUT IT IS REALLY ABOUT US!
As Rabbi Neria wrote - Moses was sent a vision from the Almighty about how the Tabernacle should look. But as the work progressed it did not always seem correct -
until he realized there were arguments between the worlers!
So he spent time smoothing out the disagreements - and then the pieces of the Tabernacle fit together perfectly.
That is our task individually and as a people - Am Yisrael - the People of the Book - which is
the Plan of the Al-mighty!
So - what are the tools? PURIM teaches that!
As Rebbe Nachman taught -
By joy, by dancing, by clapping to the beat -
and by desiring to bring G-d's Holiness into this world!
As Mordechai Told Esther "Revach V Hatzalah ... Me Makom ..." -
you can interpret his words to her as
" G-d's will is done anyway - so let's be a part of it!"
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz
in frozen New York
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קטגוריה: Parashat Hashavua
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פורסם בשישי, 27 נובמבר 2020 11:03
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Bo El Paro – Moses - Step Up to the Plate!
Remember the heroines of the portion a couple of weeks ago?
Where are all the heroines now when Moses is in his battle of wills with Pharoah?
We will hear from them in Next week's study entitled "Dance (not) Like an Egyptian"
But remember - that when Moshe was first "called up", Moses was refusing to go to the Israelites or Pharoah!
And now he's taking big swings at the ball? How'd that happen?
In the beginning G-d sends Moses back to the plate (Egypt's palace) to take a swipe at Pharoah - But Now we need a home run
And he's ready - because the Almighty says BO (come with me) not GO (yourself)! G-d is always with us as we battle evil slavey and inhuman behavior - and so he was with Moshe Rabeinu (our teacher).
SO - What's at the end of this week's portion?
A new creation – the freedom of a people to worship the Unity of G-d - the Almighty - the G-d of Abraham Isaac and Jacob – and leave Egypt's evil forever –
And to forever change he world!
Rabbi Andy Eichenholz (Inspired by Rabbi Moshe Tzvi Neriya -Thanks Zev for the exerpt from your Dad's book)
